Part 278. The triumph of love and social justice.

The ministry of Jesus emphasises the necessity of loving our neighbour. Furthermore it calls on us to show that love in practical ways and not simply by mental assent. We are called to help at the point of need the poor, the marginalised, the oppressed, the deprived, the discriminated against.   However we must not stop there: we have to challenge and seek to change the causes of poverty, oppression, marginalisation, deprivation and discrimination.

Jesus calls on us to pick up our cross and follow him, to bring about his kingdom on earth, a kingdom based on love and justice for all. It all sounds so simple and in theory it is.  The difficulty is moving from theory to practice, to achievement.

The first element, love, is for individual choice. Sadly there are many who do not love: the homophobic, the misogynistic, the greedy, the power hungry. How can we convict them of the need to change?

The second element, practical help at the point of need, is difficult to achieve. Too often the state does not provide an adequate safety net leaving it to faith groups and secular organisations to provide relief. Sadly, too many people are not reached.

The third element, to achieve social justice, is the most difficult as it involves demanding systemic change in society. It challenges those with power to make radical changes in social, economic and political thinking and to implement change. A tall order, but not impossible.

Followers of Jesus believe the teaching of Jesus will triumph, that love and social justice will prevail.